September 2010 Archives

On Saturday, September 11, 2010, ten students from the Eastern Outdoors Club and their advisors traveled to the White Mountains of New Hampshire for a hike to the summit of Mt. Washington. After arriving at Joe Dodge Lodge in Pinkham Notch, the group went on a two hour practice hike on the Tuckerman Ravine trail, and then enjoyed an excellent dinner at the Lodge. Early Sunday morning the hardy group of Eastern hikers started up the Tuckerman Ravine trail on their way to the summit.

The hike, a class 2 climb, is a 4.2 mile journey with a final elevation of 6,288 feet. The Eastern students headed out on the trail at 7 a.m. and all reached the summit by 11:30 a.m. As they climbed the headwall beyond the Hermit Lake half-way point, the wet weather made the footing difficult as they scrambled over slick rocks. One student observed that this hike, especially the challenging climb up the headwall was the "most demanding physical thing that I've ever done." In spite of the exhilarating and challenging nature of the climb, all twelve adventurers made it to the summit. When they reached the summit house, they enjoyed hot chocolate and a warm place to rest their weary legs. The usual spectacular view from the top of Mt. Washington was limited due to the heavy fog and mist; however, an up-close moose sighting (as seen in the picture below) along the lower part of the trail more than made up for the lack of summit views.

The ten members of the Outdoors Club who participated in this trip were Mike Hislop, Hannah Ojard, Natalie Ortega, Nick Denegre, Dan Smith, Jennifer Smith, Katelyn Vaughan, Colleen Bonessi, Jisu Lim, and Lauren Kostak. The club's two advisors, Norma Vivar Orum and Fred Loxsom, also enjoyed the challenging walk up New England's highest peak.